The invention relates to searching and retrieving multi-media information.
Rapid advances in computer technology have resulted in an explosion of electronically accessible information. For instance, virtually any information imaginable is available on information sources such as specialized databases and servers. The information can be accessed from the convenience of the user's computer, or may be accessed using a telephone which can relay information and allow their users to respond quickly to various situations. The advent of wireless telephones has further allowed users access to information regardless of the user's proximity to a telephone jack.
The availability of these information sources renders information, formerly hard to manage and retrieve, readily accessible. To date, the advantages associated with the widespread availability of electronic data have not been fully realized due to a variety of reasons. For instance, not all information is stored or available in the same format so that the information can be easily searched. This situation occurs when information is stored variously as video clips, sound files and text files. More particularly, information such as sound cannot be searched using conventional text search commands. Moreover, certain perishable and high value-added information such as news on business, sports, current events and entertainment are best presented in audio-visual form and multimedia form rather than text form. Yet, such sources of audio-visual/multimedia information can be prolific and can strain the processing and data storage capacity of a computer hosting such information. Examples of prolific sources of audio-visual/multimedia information include television feeds, cable feeds, radio feeds, and computer generated multimedia feeds.